Adelaide’s New Mobile Phone Detection Cameras are Flawed and Detecting Innocent Drivers

The effectiveness of South Australian’s new mobile phone cameras has been thrown into doubt, amid claims police will need to personally check every potential new fine for accuracy.

Documents released under Freedom of Information laws reveal “inconsistencies” during a secret trial of the camera last year. The trial was conducted between April 1 to April 28 last year, at a trial site along South Road at Thebarton.

A Trial Evaluation Summary obtained by 7NEWS said the occurrence of image quality issues was concerning, and would likely raise doubt on the overall integrity and operation of the system.

In a small number of cases, the AI technology pings an offence to the wrong driver. This occurs when vehicles accelerate or decelerate while travelling through the cameras.

SAPOL and police minister Dan Cregan have predictably downplayed the revelations, claiming the error rate is small.

It should be non-existent.

SAPOL claimed the concerns for false detections will be addressed during the formation testing phase, which will also “lessen” (not eliminate) fine notices being issued incorrectly.

“All vehicles that pass through the cameras will be tested by the AI, and only those determined as distracted will be processed by SAPOL for further adjudication,” the spokesman claimed.

SAPOL has a poor track record in this regard and cannot be trusted. Motorists with clear evidence of wrongly-issued fines have still been hounded by the revenue-raising SAPOL and forced to clear their names through the court system.

In 2012, innocent man Peter Richards was fined by blatantly dishonest Senior Constable Diana Rautley for allegedly using his phone while driving.

Mr Richards, however, was not only innocent of using his phone while driving – he did not even have his phone with him!

Rautley pulled Mr Richards over in Warradale in November 2012 and accused him of holding a phone while driving. But the evil Rautley admitted to the court she did not see a mobile phone in the car when she issued the fine.

Rautley further admitted Mr Richards even asked her if she would like to search his car or go to his house and see that the phone was there.

“I didn’t believe it was necessary. I was 100 per cent certain I had seen him on his mobile phone,” said the heinous Rautley.

Thanks to Rautley’s blatant dishonesty, Mr Richards was forced to spend a year fighting the fine through the courts before finally being acquitted by a magistrate.

After being acquitted, Mr Richards said felt he had been “treated like rubbish”, but said others in his position should challenge their fines.

“You really have to stand up for your rights, and that’s what I did and I would certainly encourage anybody to do it.”

Mr Richards, 62, said he made complaints to politicians and the police but no one was interested.

“They just passed it off,” he said.

“No one wanted to listen to me. I made all sorts of approaches to people and they just virtually said ‘go away’, like you’re on your own,” he told The Advertiser.

In a further insult, the notoriously pig-headed and unrepentant SAPOL refused to apologize to Mr Richards for issuing the fake fine and causing him so much grief and inconvenience.

“As in all matters, SAPOL proceeded with this case based on the fact there was a reasonable prospect of conviction,” a spokeswoman for the criminal organisation said.

South Australia Police is an inherently corrupt and malfeasant entity whose real priorities are revenue generation for the government, enforcing freedom-stripping government policies, and running its own corruption rackets like brothel extortion and drug trafficking.

Using a handheld mobile phone while commandeering a moving vehicle is irresponsible and dangerous and we wholeheartedly discourage it. However, if you receive one of these fines and you were not using your phone, you should immediately demand to see the photographic evidence, because the technology is clearly flawed.

Sources

Major problems uncovered as SA’s new mobile phone cameras fail key road test. The Advertiser.

Peter Richards fights charge of using mobile phone while driving and wins. News.com.au

South Australia Police will not apologise for wrongly charging man over mobile phone. News.com.au